Does a hotel stay in Amsterdam seem pricey? Rest at ease with plenty of accommodations that won’t break the budget. With thousands of hotel options, the scenic canal city of Amsterdam is an easy place to save on a hotel and relax in a laid back atmosphere. Between the architecture, green parks, and tulip gardens, you'll stay in picturesque settings around the city. Explore Amsterdam from various neighborhoods like Old Center, the Canal Ring, and the Old South as a base for ease of sightseeing.

What Budget Hotels are Available in Amsterdam?

Most of the more appealing budget options can be found around the outskirts of the Old City Centre in the neighboring suburbs. With a reasonable average price of between $60-$80 a night for a buget hotel, Amsterdam travel doesn't have to cost a fortune. It’s easy to reach top attractions using public transportation, so stay at the cheap hotels in Amsterdam for easy access to wherever the transit authority goes.

Golden Tulip Amsterdam West and Best Western Blue Square are great budget options to the west of the city center next to Sloterdijk station. In the South End of town, Mercure Hotel Amsterdam City provides excellent room rates. A stay in Brooklyn Hotel promises a ferry ride to Old City Centre and a unique location next to the cultural center NDSM-werf.

What are Luxury Hotels Like?

The most luxurious stays in the city can be found in five-star Amsterdam hotels designed for optimal comfort. Find premium amenities, spas, and restaurants on site at some of the top luxury hotels in prime locations.

Grand Hotel Amrâth found at the docks where Dutch ships left for the West Indies hosts maritime decor, colonial style, and even the Seven Seas restaurant with a short walk to Centraal Station. Hotel Pulitzer remains a prized stay for luxurious rooms across both 16th and 17th century buildings in the Jordaan district near Westerkerk and shopping at Nine Streets. The Bilderberg Garden Hotel hosts five-star luxury just south of the City Centre, and puts guests next to the top galleries and museums around Museum Square.

What Airbnbs are Available in Amsterdam?

There’s a new way to stay in Amsterdam that’s also easy on the budget. Rent rooms, studios or entire houses through the local residents with Airbnbs. If it sounds more appealing to book a fully furnished studio apartment or home than a hotel, then Airbnbs gives travelers this option. Stay on the outskirts of Amsterdam in a quiet suburb with a chance to rent the whole house for the duration of the trip.

For those who want to connect with the locals, an open room in a friendly host’s home gives guests a chance to chat with a local for insider advice to experience the city's best. Stay downtown in serenity next to the canals with a sleek city apartment, or choose a stay outside Amsterdam’s busy streets in a spacious home with Airbnbs. Find unique accommodations from canal houses, penthouse apartments and villas on the water throughout neighborhoods for the perfect way to plan a strategic stay outside Amsterdam hotels.

Are There Boutique & Independent Hotels Available?

Several boutique hotels allow guests to stay luxurious or eco-friendly. Stay near the City Center with great boutique hotel options like four-star The Dylan Amsterdam with Ipod docks in every room. Amadi Park Hotel Amsterdam offers low rates for a budget boutique stay in an environmentally friendly facility. Some of the most unique luxury boutique hotels like Hotel Seven One Seven inside the 17th Century Dutch sugar trader’s manor offer a scenic central location for easy access to the sights downtown. Hotel Okura in the De Pijp district is another five-star option that opens up to cityscape views.

What Hotels/Lodging is available Near the Airport?

Save time and money with a convenient hotel stay next to Amsterdam’s Airport Schiphol. Mercure Hotel Amsterdam Airport makes for easy transportation between the hotel and airport via the round-trip shuttle service. For budget hotels near the airport, ibis Amsterdam Airport and Dorint Airport Hotel Amsterdam provide complimentary airport shuttle service and easy access to the Business Park Amsterdam Osdorp and Rijksmuseum west of the City Centre.

What are the Best Times to Travel to Amsterdam?

The best times to experience Amsterdam are before and after “peak-season” in early spring and autumn. Spring heats up with tourist peak season the end of April, while the summer crowds tend to disappear by the end of August. During the spring and summer months, Amsterdam sees higher room rates, pricier flights, and more tourists to compete with at top attractions. Everyone piles into the city’s parks and gardens when nature is in full bloom during the tulip season in March, April, and May, and the summer sunshine returns to draw in more visitors by June, July, and August.

Save the budget by avoiding travel during the Queen’s Day festivities late April and early May, when hotel rates are highest. Travel in autumn for tranquil city streets, milder temperatures, low rates, and less crowds for easy entrance into historic landmarks and museums during the “off-season.” The ideal time for cheap hotels and flights to Amsterdam remains in autumn and the coldest months of winter. For those who don’t mind the extra layers of clothes, bear the cool air for the most savings with snowy canal scenes and white parks with winter travel to Amsterdam.

What Does the Old Centre Offer?

The city of Amsterdam is separated by the boroughs that paint picturesque settings of cobblestone streets and bridges over water. Explore the historic architecture, an abundance of restaurants, and prime shopping options in the Old Centre (Centrum) that stretches from Centraal Station near the water’s edge to landmark sights of monumental Dam Square.

The Old Centre is the heart of Amsterdam’s medieval district, and a great base location for sightseeing with ease of access to and from the main train station. The Old Centre holds cultural hotspots like the Old Jewish Quarter, the Royal Palace, and museums like the Amsterdam Dungeon and the Hemp Museum. One of the most popular neighborhoods of this area remains the Red Light District after dark.

What Can I Expect from the Canal Ring?

The Canal Ring or “Grachtengordel” is the most scenic area of the city with elegant mansions of former merchants lining the canals. These 17th Century waterways were originally constructed to attract wealth into the district, but their beauty remains the most picture-perfect treasure in Amsterdam. The Canal Ring holds some of the top spots for nightlife with the bars and clubs of Lenden Square (Leidseplein) and Rembrandt (Rebrandtplien). Find some of Amsterdam's top attractions in The Canal Ring, like the Anne Frank House historic museum and boutique shops at Nine Streets, Utrechtsestraat, and Haarlemmerstraat.

What is the Old South District Like?

The Old South or “Oud Zuid” contains the former districts of Amsterdam-Zuid and De Pijp. Within this neighborhood just south of the canals, experience the arts and culture in popular museums and parks. The magnificent Vondelpark can be found in the Old South for natural settings and trails best walked in the spring.

Top galleries and historical exhibitions are situated at the Museum Quarter nearby. Let the eyes wander across masterpiece paintings at the Rijksmuseum, the Van Gogh Museum, and Stedelijk Museum, and learn all about the local brews with a Heineken Experience. The Old South also puts guests close to the airport for easy transportation to and from the city, especially when traveling on business.

What is the Metro Like in Amsterdam?

It’s easy to get around Amsterdam with a respected public transportation system known as the GVB (Gemeentelijk Vervoerbedri). The GVB hosts four metro lines 50, 51, 53, and 54 that take visitors throughout the suburbs and resident neighborhoods. The 50 known as the “Ring Line” connects the southeast to the west, and line 51 runs a route south from the city center to Amstelveen. The East Lines 53 and 54 connect routes on the eastern end of town and extend into the suburbs near Gaasperplas and Gein. The metro creates a quick route to the suburbs and outskirts of the city.

What Should I Expect Traveling by Tram?

The tram is cheap, quick, and the most scenic way to traverse the town. There are 14 lines offered by GVB that run across the city, and most trains embark from Centraal Station along the water to the east. Enter the train station, and buy tickets by duration from one hour up to 48 hours on an “OV-chipkaart.” Save money while sightseeing with day tickets for up to seven days that offer convenient transportation through all GBV public transportation options. To hop the trams, be sure to head near the back for the designated entry and exit doors.

What is a Taxi Ride Like?

The most expensive transportation option is no doubt, the taxis. Taxis in Amsterdam are also the least efficient way to get around with traffic jams and fares that rack up numbers at an upwards of $100 for a half hour to get across town. It might be best to avoid the taxis to skip the frustration when locked between canals, bridges, and narrow streets of busy inner-city street traffic. Swap the taxi for a hotel airport shuttle on the west end of the city center.

Should I Rent a Car in Amsterdam?

It might be a mistake to rent a car or brave the one-way roads and narrow canal streets near the City Centre in Amsterdam. This city certainly wasn't designed for car traffic, and gets packed during rush hour or holiday weekends. With pedestrian-friendly streets and few places to park downtown, it's best to go without the rental car. Save the rental car for excursions outside the city, or else parking could get awkward.

How are the Public Buses in Amsterdam?

Hop a bus anywhere in Amsterdam for easy public transportation provided by the GVB. Many bus routes embark from Centraal Station, where tickets can be purchased inside. Night buses might be a bit more expensive, but they offer a low-cost option for after-hours transportation to the hotel versus taxis that cost a fortune.

What is a Ferry Ride Down the Canals Like?

Depending on the hotel location, a ferry boat may be necessary to get to and from the sights of the City Centre. The main canals of Herengracht, Keizersgracht, and Prinsengracht provide a unique transporation option via the eight ferry links that embark from Centraal Station. Many of the ferries are also great for sightseeing, as they take visitors on a scenic adventure to top attractions by boat.

Sail on the Green Line from Central Station West to East for stops to include Leidseplein and the Anne Frank House. The Red Line runs from Central Station East to West to include a stop at the Amsterdam Museum. Take the Blue Line to the eastern Plantage District and the Orange Line for Rembrandt Square.

How Can I Experience Art in Amsterdam?

Amsterdam is a city for artists and cultural attractions with museums, architecture, and galleries. Find masterworks by Rembrandt in the galleries and exhibitions of the Museum Quarter filled with relics and art from a former time. Be sure to add the Rembrandt House Museum to the itinerary for a look inside the painter’s old rooms and home with a collection of prints on display. The Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam houses the world’s largest collection of this Dutch painter's works from the Potato Eaters to the Sunflowers, Irises, and his own Self-Portrait as a Painter.

How Will “Bike Like a Local” Improve My Amsterdam Experience?

Amsterdam is best seen by bicycle. Ride around the city for ease of transportation along the bridges and canals. These narrow streets and alleyways can get messy with a maze of cars backed up with traffic on busy days. Use “Bike Like a Local” to save the budget with bicycle transportation and bike parking across Amsterdam. Bike Like a Local is an mobile phone app developed for the iPhone to better navigate the city on a bike. It lists over 10, 000 bike parking spots across Amsterdam, contact numbers for bike theft, and the top places to rent bicycles. Download the app for easy bike excursions.